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Exhibition
Proximity to Power

Circle Art Gallery

Proximity To Power is an exhibition that looks at the Kenyan voting patterns and how Kenyans have repeatedly let the ruling class chaperone them into ethnic enclaves with politicians cutting deals on the account of their ethnic populace; with the common perception being that all Luo will vote for a Luo candidate, while all Kikuyu will automatically vote in a Kikuyu, etc.

As a country that has thriven on its diversity, Proximity To Power interrogates how the prospect of a person from one tribe, race or religion ascending to political power influences the choices people make, temporarily compromising their moral values and congregating ‘their own’ regardless of their reputation. It is an objective confrontation of the rising xenophobia in Kenya, while looking within to question this uncomfortable subject.
It’s an interrogation of how the Proximity to Power syndrome has been used as a political strategy to ascend to and retain political power with the illusion that ‘one’ shall benefit more if someone from ‘their’ community ascends to political power, while looking at how ingrained hate for the ‘other tribe’ has created prejudices, and a discriminative culture and stereotypes that are used to justify the fear for the other ethnic group/race/religion.